A Polish Book of Monsters by Michael Kandel

Author:Michael Kandel [Kandel, Michael]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-05-25T00:00:00+00:00

This time Ha-hon waited for Kajetan.

The place where the old building once stood had been cleared of bushes by the troll. Through the moss now ran furrows, a hand’s width and dug down into the black soil; these were arranged in spirals, or in the sweeping letters of a secret script, or in the shapes of animals. The lines all met at the center of the clearing, where Ha-hon had set stones in a circle, a circle so large that Kajetan would not have been able to jump across it even with a running start. Most of these stones Kajetan had brought himself, for it was easier to gather them in the fields than here in the woods. There were twenty-four — the largest the size of a child’s head, the smallest like a child’s clenched fist.

As the troll once explained to the boy, the channels carved in the moss were to fill the stones with the power of the earth. When focused on the objects collected inside the circle, that power would enable the key to open the gate to the troll’s home world.

There were four objects inside. A blood-red crystal: the troll’s amulet, which remembered the way back. A scroll of yellowed paper covered with black marks: the formulas that permitted you to part the successive curtains between one reality and the next. An oak branch to draw the force of all plants. An elk bone to provide the strength of all beasts.

Ha-hon sat beneath the arch that would span worlds. He had built it himself. In a forward squat, he was pressing his long hands to the ground. His eyes were shut. He gulped the air — as though by force of will alone he was holding back an earthquake, a tornado.

“You have it, boy?” he asked, not opening his eyes.

“Yes,” said Kajetan, approaching the troll slowly, carefully, trying not to step on any of the lines cut into the moss. If something flowed there, even if invisible, it might hurt his bare feet. Coming up to the circle of stones, he saw that the troll held in his left hand the key of passage.

“Good.” Ha-hon opened his bulbous eyes, which now were burning. “The moment nears.”

“There are no jaegers in the village. Our people are still gathering. You have time.”

“Give me the egg.“The troll stretched out his hand.

“But…” Kajetan hesitated, reluctant to step into the circle. He stood at its edge, shifting from foot to foot.

“Afraid?” Ha-hon smiled.

“Me? Never!” Kajetan stuck out his chest yet still did not move.

“You should be afraid, boy. Many lines of magic converge here, and you possess none yourself. Worse, I do not have my own key, only this.” He raised it on his open palm. “It is the key of the barlogs, as you curiously call them. I must adapt to it the aura of my world. It would be different if those scum had not taken mine. Believe me, much different… But no matter, give me the egg.”

Kajetan reached into his pocket and took out a chicken egg, which had been wrapped in straw for protection.

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